If you are a federal government employee who has been fired at USAID, the USDA or other federal agencies do you know your rights to file legal challenges to your removal from federal service?

Should you file a lawsuit, an administrative complaint or a union grievance? What is the correct path? It depends.

The civil service laws and procedures applicable to challenge removal from federal service are complex and highly technical. Learn your rights and contact an experienced federal employee attorney and your union representative if you haven’t already done so.

If you want to file a complaint or appeal with the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) there is an online portal (MSPB e-appeal web site) for filing complaints or appeals from removals from federal service. But know your rights and get help from an experienced lawyer or your union, before filing with MSPB. The system is filled with traps for the unwary.

For example, according to the MSPB website, in “most types of cases, an appeal must be filed within 30 calendar days of the effective date of the action, if any, or within 30 calendar days after the date of receipt of the agency's decision, whichever is later.” According to news reports, most employees at USAID started receiving notices they were permanently terminated around February 21-23, 2025. That means the 30-day statute of limitations for filing an appeal or complaint with MSPB will expire soon.

The MSPB web complaint/appeal portal contains a description of the process, and it is available here.

Additionally, an MSPB “appeal must be in writing and contain all the information specified in the Board's regulations,” according to the MSPB website. See 5 C.F.R. § 1201.24 (most appeals).

If you are a Veterans Administration employee special rules may apply. Appeals of removal, demotion, or suspension for more than 14 days based on performance or misconduct in the Department of Veterans Affairs under 38 U.S.C. § 714(c)(4)(B) "may only be made if such appeal is made not later than 10 business days after the date of such removal, demotion, or suspension." 

The MSPB will require you to provide all information required by its regulations to perfect an appeal. Documents required to be filed with most appeals are the notice of proposed action, the agency decision to take the action being appealed, and if available, the SF-50 or similar notice of personnel action. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.24(a)(7). After the MSPB appeal is filed, the agency must file all documents contained in the agency record of the action. The case will be assigned to an Administrative Judge and thereafter you will receive notices and scheduling orders that will require you to provide additional evidence and respond to the agency’s arguments and evidence. Having an experienced federal employee attorney is extremely helpful to navigate the MSPB’s administrative process.

There might be other routes to take, such as filing a union grievance or filing a Prohibited Personnel Practice (PPP) complaint with the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), or filing the PPP challenge directly with the MSPB. You should consult with your union or an experienced attorney to get advice on what is the best route for you.

If you are a civil servant with tenure (i.e., non-probationary employee) and were fired by email without receiving the normal notice of proposed removal and provided an opportunity to be heard before issuance of a final decision of removal, then you may be entitled to contest the removal on the grounds that it is a PPP.

Even if you were a probationary employee you may have rights to contest your removal because the agency may have failed to comply with the law when firing probationary employees. The MSPB granted the request of the OSC to stay the mass firings of probationary employees at some agencies, including 6,000 employees at USDA whose terminations were stayed on March 5, 2025.

Complicating matters is President Trump’s firing of OSC head Hampton Dellinger, who tried to keep his job but he lost a legal ruling at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Dellinger chose to withdraw his legal challenge after the D.C. Circuit ruled that the district court’s injunction to reinstate him as Special Counsel should be stayed, meaning that Trump could install his own choice for Special Counsel to lead OSC. Consequently, filing a PPP complaint with OSC after Dellinger’s firing may lead to nowhere except it might toll the time you need to file a complaint or appeal with the MSPB.

However, federal employment lawyers have filed a class action appeal with the MSPB seeking to protect the rights of thousands of probationary employees at several federal agencies.

The MSPB has posted lengthy webpages here and here describing what is a Prohibited Personnel Practice and the various ways a PPP challenge can be raised at MSPB or OSC. Read up because it's a labyrinth of procedures.

What about filing a federal court lawsuit or constitutional claim? Well, there might be grounds in some instances to do that, particularly if you don’t have any appeal rights under the civil service laws, but if you are covered by the civil service laws a federal court might decide that it lacks jurisdiction to hear the challenge. The court could rule that you must exhaust administrative remedies under the civil service laws before going to court, or it might conclude that exclusive jurisdiction rests with the MSPB. There have been cases where the courts have held that you must raise and exhaust your constitutional claims with the MSPB before they can be heard in the federal courts.

If you are a civil servant who has MSPB appeal rights your best option may be to file there, either individually or as part of a group of similarly situated employees. But you should consult with a lawyer who is experienced in federal employment law or your union representative before taking action. 

Depending upon your situation and the circumstances of your removal from the federal service, there likely are multiple federal employment law firms already preparing or filing class action type group appeals with the MSPB which might include your situation, and they are likely willing to offer consultation about your particular situation.

However, you should take action to protect your rights by seeking legal advice and not sleep on your rights. The 30-day statute of limitations to file with MSPB goes by fast. If you do not take timely action to protect your rights, you could be out of luck.